Live Music From the Stars of Broadway's 'Chess'

Summary

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All Of It with Alison Stewart

Episode: Live Music From the Stars of Broadway's 'Chess'
Date: April 3, 2026
Host: Alison Stewart (WNYC)
Guests: Lea Michele (Florence), Aaron Tveit (Freddie), Nicholas Christopher (Anatoly), plus mentions of Hannah Cruz (Svetlana), Michael Mayer (director), Danny Strong (librettist)

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Episode Overview

This episode of All Of It features a vibrant live discussion and musical performance with the cast and creative team of the Broadway musical Chess. Recorded in front of a sold-out audience at WNYC’s Green Space, host Alison Stewart and her guests dive into character dynamics, cast chemistry, recording the new cast album, and the emotional significance of performing at the historic Imperial Theatre. The episode concludes with a live performance of “You and I” by Lea Michele and Nicholas Christopher.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Character Dynamics: Genius, Ego, and Relationships

• Florence, Freddie, Anatoly:
  • Florence’s View: Florence is drawn to Freddie’s genius despite his ego, but finds more stability and safety with Anatoly.
    • “Because of [Freddie's] genius, it allows her to sort of sometimes ignore the negative. With Anatoly...there is so much more that is safer for her and loving.”
      — Lea Michele [01:15, 17:19]
  • Freddie’s Complexity: Freddie’s brilliance is entwined with narcissism and mental health struggles, born from fame at a young age.
    • “His narcissism is also at play and brilliance...it’s like poison for him because the more notoriety he gets, the more narcissistic he is, but the more terrified he is.”
      — Aaron Tveit [01:57, 18:00]
  • Rivalry and Respect: Initially, Freddie’s anti-Soviet bias blinds him to respecting Anatoly, but this evolves to understanding and mutual respect.
    • “At the beginning, Freddie’s also kind of blinded by his deep rooted hate for the Soviet Union...By the end, we come to this kind of mutual understanding.”
      — Aaron Tveit [03:19, 19:22]
    • “There’s a fascination of how you navigate the world that is the complete antithesis of the way Anatoly has been programmed.”
      — Nicholas Christopher [02:49, 18:52]

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Onstage Chemistry & Relationships

• Anatoly & Svetlana:
  • Nicholas Christopher praises Hannah Cruz (Svetlana) for her impact with limited stage time and describes Anatoly's complex, wounded, but deeply connected relationship with her.
    • “There’s a lot of hurt, there are a lot of open wounds there. And so there is an amount of distrust. And yet there is this odd, like, physical comfort with each other...”
      — Nicholas Christopher [04:19, 20:26]
• Cast Bonding:
  • Recording the cast album brought everyone together, rekindling the camaraderie of early rehearsals.
    • “For the first time since rehearsal, we were all in one room again...We got to eat dinner together and really like snack and joke around and have this experience.”
      — Nicholas Christopher [08:08, 24:11]

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Recording the Cast Album

• Studio vs. Stage:
  • Lea Michele and Aaron Tveit describe the challenge and thrill of capturing live performance energy in the studio.
    • “I was really sort of worried that I wouldn’t be able to find that same sort of power and connection. But something really special just happened...I got to look at everyone and sing the words to our whole cast.”
      — Lea Michele [05:38, 21:41]
    • “To be in that recording studio and just having like, a fully immersive sonic experience with that music was really remarkable to me. I was once again reminded just how incredible this music is.”
      — Aaron Tveit [07:08, 23:11]
  • The new recording of “Nobody’s Side” is out now, with more tracks coming soon.

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The Imperial Theatre’s Significance

• Personal Milestone for Lea Michele:
  • Lea Michele reflects emotionally on debuting at the Imperial Theatre as a child in Les Misérables, describing it as “home”.
    • “I wrote my college essay that got me accepted into NYU about the Imperial Theater...it was where I made my debut in Les Mis when I was 8 years old...it’s the happiest I’ve ever been in a work experience in my life.”
      — Lea Michele [09:14, 25:21]

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Working Together—Bringing “Sweeney Todd” Experience to “Chess”

• Mutual Trust and Playfulness:
  • Though Aaron and Nicholas didn’t rehearse extensively together on Sweeney Todd, their previous collaboration built a foundation of trust and openness in Chess.
    • “Nick had such an innate playfulness on stage...I just had so much respect for Nick for, you know, his talent and what he brought...to actually experience an entire rehearsal process and build something with him has just been really amazing.”
      — Aaron Tveit [10:39, 26:42]
    • “I really had a trust with him of, like, we can go wherever, or if somebody makes a decision, we’ll just go with it and see what happens.”
      — Nicholas Christopher [11:20, 27:23]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “There’s a fascination...of how you navigate the world that is the complete antithesis of the way Anatoly has been programmed.”
  — Nicholas Christopher [02:49, 18:52]

• “The more notoriety he gets, the more narcissistic he is, but the more terrified he is...this constant cycle...tied into his intelligence and the game of chess and his fame.”
  — Aaron Tveit [01:57, 18:00]

• “It’s really the happiest I’ve ever been in a work experience in my life.”
  — Lea Michele on returning to the Imperial Theatre [09:14, 25:21]

• “For the first time since rehearsal, we were all in one room again… that’s what I’ll be thinking about as I listen to the cast album when it comes out.”
  — Nicholas Christopher [08:08, 24:11]

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Musical Highlight: Live Performance of “You and I”

• Setup:
  • Lea Michele describes the song as a pivotal emotional moment for Florence and Anatoly, marking a crack in their previously safe relationship.
    • “...the first time that we can see a real crack happening between the two of us and in our relationship. And something that felt so pure and safe is now sort of being...attacked.”
      — Lea Michele [12:01, 28:04]
• Performance:
  • “You and I” performed by Lea Michele and Nicholas Christopher (Florence and Anatoly), accompanied by live narration.
    [13:11–15:39, 29:14–31:43]

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Important Timestamps

• 01:01 / 17:05 — Character discussions: genius, ego, and relationships
• 04:19 / 20:26 — Nicholas on Anatoly & Svetlana’s relationship
• 05:38 / 21:41 — Recording the cast album: emotions and process
• 09:14 / 25:21 — Lea Michele on the significance of the Imperial Theatre
• 10:39 / 26:42 — Bringing experiences from Sweeney Todd to Chess
• 12:01 / 28:04 — Setting up “You and I”
• 13:11–15:39 / 29:14–31:43 — Live performance: “You and I” by Lea Michele & Nicholas Christopher

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Closing Notes

• Lea Michele departs Chess on June 21 (to be succeeded by JoJo Levesque on June 23).
• The event video is available on WNYC’s YouTube.
• Next Broadway on the Radio event features the cast of Ragtime on April 17th.

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Tone: Conversational, insightful, warm, and enthusiastic—capturing the camaraderie and passion of the Broadway cast both on and off the stage.

Transcript

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[Alison Stewart]

You're listening to all of it on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart. This is a special presentation of our Broadway on the Radio event with the cast and creative team behind the musical Chess. It took place in front of a sold out crowd in the green space on March 19th. Let's dive back in.

[Interviewer/Host]

Leah, in your character descriptions in the script, Florence and Anatoly are described as brilliant, but Freddie is described as, quote, having a big ego. How do you think this explains the way the relationships work out?

[Lea Michele]

Well, I think from Florence's perspective, Freddie is extremely brilliant. I think that that's what, what she loves about him. I think that she's very attracted to his genius and I think that because of that it allows her to sort of sometimes ignore the negative. I think with Anatoly, it's very clear that he's also brilliant, but there is so much more that is safer for her and loving. And I get to have two very different relationships with the both of them.

[Interviewer/Host]

Aaron, do you think your character has a big ego or is brilliant or both?

[Aaron Tveit]

I think all the above, yeah. You know, as I mentioned before, Freddie's dealing with some mental health issues that I think stem from kind of being thrust into the spotlight as a, as a child and kind of becoming world famous as this chess champion when he was a child. And through that, though, his, his narcissism is also at play and brilliance. And I think all these things are very, very closely tied together. And so it's this really, it's like poison for him because the more notoriety he gets, the more narcissistic he is, but then the more terrified he is. And so it's just this constant cycle that he's on of these, these mood swings and highs and lows that I think is really tied into his intelligence and the game of chess and his fame that he's found from all of this.

[Interviewer/Host]

Nicholas, do Freddie and Anatoly, do they respect one another?

[Nicholas Christopher]

I definitely think by the end they do. I think they. Yeah, yeah, I think the respect comes from, at least from my perspective, when we're sitting on that bench at the end is there's this fascination, or even at the beginning when I'm watching you, there's this fascination of how you navigate the world that is the complete antithesis of the way Anatoly has been programmed.

[Interviewer/Host]

What do you think?

[Aaron Tveit]

I think the same. I think by the end, you know, we come to this kind of mutual understanding of each other. Come to this mutual understanding of each other. But I think at the beginning, Freddie's also kind of blinded by his deep rooted hate for the Soviet Union. And so I think at the very beginning of where we find these characters, even if Freddie may have respect for Anatoly as a chess player or a person, he's just completely blinded by this thing that he has against the Soviet Union. And so it's really, you know, interesting to have that kind of strip away and he even realizes that it's, as Danny said before, it's, you know, that we're all pawns to these big governments and then we can see each other at a more human level by the end of the show.

[Interviewer/Host]

Nicholas, I want to give a shout out to the woman who plays. It's Hannah Cruz.

[Nicholas Christopher]

Yeah.

[Interviewer/Host]

Who plays your Svetlana?

[Nicholas Christopher]

Hannah Cruz.

[Lea Michele]

Yes.

[Nicholas Christopher]

The one and only.

[Interviewer/Host]

Tell us a little bit about her and tell us a little bit about their relationship.

[Nicholas Christopher]

Well, she was born in Connecticut in 19. No, I.

[Lea Michele]

She has a cat named Svetlana.

[Nicholas Christopher]

She has a cat named Svetlana.

[Interviewer/Host]

Really, I name.

[Nicholas Christopher]

I mean, what an uphill battle she has every day to enter into Act 2 to get the audience to see her perspective and to just sing her face off and act her face off in what, like 20 minutes of stage time. And she's so memorable. That's such a testament of who she is as an artist. But when we come into our story, I haven't seen her for four years, and I imagine that we grew up together, and then all of a sudden there's this four year gap and there's a lot of hurt, there are a lot of open wounds there. And so there is an amount of distrust. And yet there is this odd, like, physical comfort with each other and exploring that. And the distrust doesn't mean that I hate her. Like, I don't want her to die. I don't want my kids to die. And so it really throws Anatoly into this predicament of do I choose myself or do I choose others?

[Interviewer/Host]

I want to give her her flowers. On this. You recorded a cast album in January. How does that feel for you when you go into the booth and you have to recreate the show?

[Lea Michele]

I was definitely nervous because I think that we just create such an energy every night, you know, with our. With our band and singing to the audience. And I just have loved every night being able to connect individually with as many people as I can find to, you know, sing these words to. And it's a really thrilling experience. So going into the studio, for me, specifically with Nobody's Side, I was really sort of worried that I wouldn't be able to find that same sort of power and connection. But something really special just happened, and sometimes it's, you know, unexplainable. But I think that the gods were really in our favor. And we recorded in a studio that's very iconic for, you know, theater recordings, but it's in the round. And so each night when I perform, I have the. Our incredible, incredible ensemble who we have to give a shout out to because they're so amazing. They're, yes, brilliant and beautiful and so hardworking. And in that song, they're behind me and they're sort of like the. The pulse, like the heartbeat of the song, but I never get to see them. And so there we were in the studio in this round space, and I got to look at everyone and sing the words to our whole cast, and it was really amazing. And we have gotten to hear some of the songs. Nobody's side is available now for the world to hear and listen to. And more coming soon. And it's going to be amazing.

[Interviewer/Host]

What was it like for you to sing this?

[Aaron Tveit]

I actually had an amazing time. It was, you know, this. It reminded me, I think, not that you just, you know, sometimes you can't see the forest or the trees. And so you do during the show. During the show, eight times a week, you have kind of one. Lots of different thoughts. But to be in that recording studio and just having, like, a fully immersive sonic experience with that music was really remarkable to me. And it was also amazing that I could really hear myself and hear everyone else, because on stage, those things are varying degrees just for the nature of performing on stage. So I was once again reminded just how incredible this music is and how unbelievable our orchestra and our band sound. And so just for all that to come together and, you know, it'll be out and everyone else can throw their headphones on and listen to.

[Interviewer/Host]

It'll be out when?

[Aaron Tveit]

It'll be out soon. It'll be out very soon. But as we said, nobody Sighed out today on all platforms Go listen

[Interviewer/Host]

and Nicholas, what was the experience like for you?

[Nicholas Christopher]

The experience was great for me. So we recorded most of it in one day, and we had a couple of other days here and there for other songs. But when you rehearse a show for four weeks, everybody's in the same room all together, all the time. And then you move into the theater, and everybody goes off into their different dressing rooms on different floors, and you're concentrated on the show, and then you come in in a half hour before the show, and you do the show, and then you leave. And. And for the first time since rehearsal, we were all in one room again, like Leah was just talking about. And we got to eat dinner together, and we got to really, like, snack and joke around and have this experience. So that's really what I remember from it, because it was a long day of, like, a bunch of different things just running in and out of the booth. But coming together as a cast, we all truly get along, which is really extraordinary. So for us to be in the same room, that. That's what I'll be thinking about as I listen to the cast album when it comes out, when

[Interviewer/Host]

this is running at the Imperial Theater. And that's where you made your Broadway debut, Les Miserables.

[Lea Michele]

Yes.

[Interviewer/Host]

What's special to you about being in that theater?

[Lea Michele]

Oh, my gosh. I just remembered that I wrote my college essay that got me accepted into NYU about the Imperial Theater. And I didn't remember until the other day, but I wrote that other people will look back on their childhood homes as being their home and the place that really molded them. But I wrote it about the Imperial Theater because it was where I made my debut in Les Mis when I was 8 years old. And it was where I really found myself and I found my passion. And I'm a mom. I have, you know, two little kids. And all you can hope as a parent is that your children, whatever it is, that they find something that makes them feel safe and like they can be themselves and like they can express themselves and that they feel truly happy. And that's what I found at 8 inside the Imperial Theater. And so every day when I walk in, it's smells the same. It's like I can hear the first, you know, few words of Les Mis playing. And I feel so happy and so at home. It's really the happiest I've ever been in a work experience in my life. And I think so much of that is just because this theater means so much to me, and Yeah, I could talk about it. These guys, they've heard of too much, but it's very special.

[Interviewer/Host]

Now you two work together on sweeneytot.

[Lea Michele]

Yeah.

[Interviewer/Host]

What is something from that experience that

[Alison Stewart]

you brought to Chess?

[Aaron Tveit]

You know, Nick and I didn't get to rehearse Sweeney together because I joined the show when it was already going on. But I think in our scenes we had. There was like, you know, Nick had such an innate playfulness on stage. And, you know, it was interesting. The kind of. The tonality of the characters we were playing are actually quite reversed in this. You know, he was a very playful person, and I was being very stoic, and now it's kind of flipped. But, you know, I just had so much respect for Nick for, you know, his talent and what he brought to the stage every day, day, and him as a person. And so to kind of get to walk back in with that kind of baseline knowledge of each other and then get to actually experience an entire rehearsal process and build something with him has just been. It's been really, really amazing.

[Interviewer/Host]

What do you remember from that experience?

[Nicholas Christopher]

I remember looking in Aaron's eyes and throwing whatever I could, including shaving cream, at him. And he was just. And he was so game. So I think coming into this process, I really had a trust with him of, like, we can go wherever, or if somebody makes a decision, we'll. We'll just go with it and see what happens. And like I said, every time we get to, like, sit on this bench together, we have. We sit on the same bench in two different scenes, and it's just like, okay, I don't know where this is going, but I'm game, and I know he's game.

[Interviewer/Host]

Our last song we're going to hear is Florence Anatoly singing. You and I. Can you set this up?

[Lea Michele]

Florence and Anatoly have been, you know, for four years, they have been together in a very sort of loving and safe space. They've fled to London together, and they come back to a chess tournament where they're going to be reunited with Freddie again for the first time, which brings up its own set of, you know, anxiety. And then they are confronted with sort of. They get set up, I guess you could say, in a very negative way. And we sing this song to each other, sort of the first time that we can see a real crack happening between the two of us and in our relationship. And something that felt so pure and safe is now sort of being, you know, attacked and how deeply we are trying to hold on to the love that we have for each other and this connection that we. That we have.

[Interviewer/Host]

Let's hear it.

[Nicholas Christopher]

Yeah, that was pretty good.

[Interviewer/Host]

All right. Look at him stage managing. I love it.

[Narrator/Reader]

This is an all too familiar scene. Life imperceptibly coming between those whose love is as strong as it could or should be. Nothing has altered yet everything's changed. No one stands still still. I love you completely and hope I always will. Each day we get through means one less mistake left for the making

[Nicholas Christopher]

and

[Narrator/Reader]

there's no return as we slowly lear of the chance we're taking. I leave the world to stay just as we are. It's better by far not to be too wise not to realize when there's truth there will be light. You and I, we've seen it all. Been down this road before yet we go unbelieving. You and I, we've seen it all Chasing our hearts tears are yet I still think I'm certain this time it will be far. Happy and dear.

[Alison Stewart]

That was Nicholas Christopher and Lea Michele performing you and I from the musical chess live in WNYC's green space as part of our Broadway on the radio event. We were also joined by actor Aaron Tveit, director Michael Mayer, and librettist Danny Strong. You can find a video of the event on WNYC's YouTube page. And if you want to see Lea Michele in Chess, get your tickets quickly. It's been announced that she will be leaving the show on June 21 and she will be replaced by pop star Joanna Jojo levesque starting on June 23rd. If you want to join our next Broadway on the radio event, tickets are on sale now. We'll be joined by the cast from the critically acclaimed revival of ragtime. That's on April 17th. Get your tickets now by going to wnyc.org events. I'm Alison Stewart. Thanks for listening. You're listening to all of it on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart. This is a special presentation of our Broadway on the radio event with the cast and creative team behind the musical Chess. It took place in front of a sold out crowd in the green space on March 19th. Let's dive back in.

[Interviewer/Host]

Leah, in your character descriptions in the script, Florence and Anatoly are described as brilliant, but Freddie is described as, quote, having a big ego. How do you think this explains the way the relationships work out?

[Lea Michele]

Well, I think from Florence's perspective, Freddie is extremely brilliant. I think that that's what she loves about him. I think that she's very attracted to his genius and I think that because of that, it allows her to sort of sometimes ignore the negative. I think with Anatoly, it's very clear that he's also brilliant, but there is so much more that is safer for her and loving. And I get to have two very different relationships with the both of them.

[Interviewer/Host]

Aaron, do you think your character has a big ego or is brilliant or both?

[Aaron Tveit]

I think all the above, yeah. You know, as I mentioned before, Freddie's dealing with some mental health issues that I think stem from kind of being thrust into the spotlight as a child and kind of becoming world famous as this chess champion when he was a child. And through that, though, his, his narcissism is also at play and brilliance. And I think all these things are very, very closely tied together. And so it's this really. It's like a. It's like poison for him because the more notoriety he gets, the more narcissistic he is, but then the more terrified he is. And so it's just this constant cycle that he's on of these, these mood swings and highs and lows that I think is really tied into his intelligence and the game of chess and his fame that he's found from all of this.

[Interviewer/Host]

Nicholas, do Freddie and Anatoly, do they respect one another?

[Nicholas Christopher]

I definitely think by the end they do. I think they. Yeah, yeah. I think the respect comes from, at least from my perspective when we're sitting on that bench at the end is there's this fascination, or even at the beginning when I'm watching you, there's this fascination of how you navigate the world that is the complete antithesis of the way Anatoly has been programmed.

[Interviewer/Host]

What do you think?

[Aaron Tveit]

I think the same. I think by the end we come to this kind of mutual understanding of each other. Come to this mutual understanding of each other. But I think at the beginning, Freddie's also kind of blinded by his deep rooted hate for the Soviet Union. And so I think at the very beginning of where we find these characters, even if Freddie may have respect for Anatoly as a chess player or a person, he's just completely blinded by this thing that he has against the Soviet Union. And so it's really interesting to have that kind of strip away and he even realizes that it's, as Danny said before, it's, you know, that we're all pawns to these big governments and then we can see each other at a more human level. By the end of the show.

[Interviewer/Host]

Nicholas, I want to give a shout out to the woman who plays. It's Hannah Cruz?

[Nicholas Christopher]

Yeah.

[Interviewer/Host]

Who plays your wife?

[Nicholas Christopher]

Svetlana? Hannah Cruz? Yes, the one and only.

[Interviewer/Host]

Tell us a little bit about her and tell us a little bit about their relationship.

[Nicholas Christopher]

Well, she was born in Connecticut in 19. No, I.

[Lea Michele]

She has a cat named Svetlana.

[Nicholas Christopher]

She has a cat named Svetlana.

[Interviewer/Host]

Really?

[Lea Michele]

I named her.

[Nicholas Christopher]

I mean, what an uphill battle she has every day to enter into Act 2, to get the audience to see her perspective and. And to just sing her face off and act her face off in what, like 20 minutes of stage time. And she's so memorable. That's such a testament of who she is as an artist. But when we come into our story, I haven't seen her for four years and I imagine that we. We grew up together and then all of a sudden there's this four year gap and there's a lot of hurt, there are a lot of open wounds there. And so there is an amount of distrust. And yet there is this odd, like, physical comfort with each other and exploring that. And the distrust doesn't mean that I hate her. Like, I don't want her to die. I don't want my kids to die. And so it really throws Anatolia into this predicament of do I choose myself or do I choose others?

[Interviewer/Host]

Want to give her her flowers on this. You recorded a cast album in January. How does that feel for you when you go into the booth and you have to recreate the show?

[Lea Michele]

I was definitely nervous because I think that we just create such an energy every night, you know, with our. With our band and singing to the audience. And I just have loved every night being able to connect individually with as many people as I can find to, you know, sing these words to. And it's a really thrilling experience. So going into the studio for me specifically with Nobody's side, I was really sort of worried that I wouldn't be able to find that same sort of power and connection. But something really special just happened and sometimes it's, you know, unexplainable. But I think that the gods were really in our favor. And we recorded in a studio that's very iconic for, you know, theater recordings, but it's in the round. And so each night when I perform, I have the. Our incredible, incredible ensemble who we have to give a shout out to because they're so amazing. They're, yes, brilliant and beautiful and so hardworking. And in that song, they're behind me and they're sort of like the. The pulse, like the heartbeat of the song. But I never get to see Them. And so there we were in the studio in this round space, and I got to look at everyone and sing the words to our whole cast. And it was really amazing. And we have gotten to hear some of the songs. Nobody's side is available now for the world to hear and listen to. And more coming soon, and it's going to be amazing.

[Interviewer/Host]

What was it like for you to sing this?

[Aaron Tveit]

I actually had an amazing time. It was, you know, this. It reminded me, I think, not that you just, you know, sometimes you can't see the forest of the trees. And so you do during the show. Doing the show eight times a week, you have kind of one lots of different thoughts. But to be in that recording studio and just having, like, a fully immersive sonic experience with that music was really remarkable to me. And it was also amazing that I could really hear myself and hear everyone else, because on stage, those things are varying degrees just for the nature of performing on stage. So I was once again reminded just how incredible this music is and how unbelievable our orchestra and our band sound. And so just for all that to come together and, you know, it'll be out and everyone else can throw their headphones on and listen to it.

[Interviewer/Host]

It'll be out when?

[Aaron Tveit]

It'll be out soon. It'll be out very soon. But as we said, nobody signed out today. On all platforms, go listen.

[Interviewer/Host]

And Nicholas, what was the experience like for you?

[Nicholas Christopher]

The experience was great for me. So we recorded most of it in one day, and we had a couple of other days here and there for other songs. But when you rehearse a show for four weeks, everybody's in the same room all together, all the time. And then you move into the theater and everybody goes off into their different dressing rooms on different floors, and you're concentrated on the show. And then you come in in a half hour before the show, and you do the show and then you leave. And for the first time since rehearsal, we were all in one room again, like Leah was just talking about. And we got to eat dinner together and we got to really, like, snack and joke around and have this experience. So that's really what I remember from it, because it was a long day of, like, a bunch of different things just running in and out of the booth. But coming together as a cast, we all truly get along, which is really extraordinary. So for us to be in the same room, that's what I'll be thinking about as I listen to the cast album when it comes out. Soon.

[Lea Michele]

Soon.

[Interviewer/Host]

This is running at the Imperial Theater. And that's where you made your Broadway debut, Les Miserables.

[Lea Michele]

Yes.

[Interviewer/Host]

What's special to you about being in that theater?

[Lea Michele]

Oh, my gosh. I just remembered that I wrote my college essay that got me accepted into NYU about the Imperial Theater. And I didn't remember until the other day, but I wrote that other people will look back on their childhood homes as being their home and the place that really molded them. But I wrote it about the Imperial Theater because it was where I made my debut in Les Mis when I was 8 years old. And it was where I really found myself and I found my passion. And I'm a mom. I have, you know, two little kids. And all you can hope as a parent is that your children, whatever it is, that they find something that makes them feel safe and like, they can be themselves and like, they can express themselves and that they feel truly happy. And that's what I found at 8 inside the Imperial Theater. And so every day when I walk in, it smells the same. It's like I can hear the first, you know, few words of Les Mis playing. And I feel so, so happy and so at home. It's really the happiest I've ever been in a work experience in my life. And I think so much of that is just because this theater means so much to me. And, yeah, I could talk about it. These guys, they've heard. They've heard of too much, but it's very special.

[Interviewer/Host]

Now you two work together on sweeneytot.

[Lea Michele]

Yeah.

[Interviewer/Host]

What is something from that experience that

[Alison Stewart]

you brought to Chess?

[Aaron Tveit]

You know, Nick and I didn't get to rehearse Sweeney Together because I joined the show when it was already going on. But I think in our scenes we had. There was like, you know, Nick had such an innate playfulness on stage. And, you know, it was interesting. The kind of. The tonality of the characters we were playing are actually quite reversed in this. You know, he was a very playful person, and I was being very stoic, and now it's kind of flipped. But, you know, I just had so much respect for Nick, for, you know, his talent and what he brought to the stage every day and him as a person. And so to kind of get to walk back in with that kind of baseline knowledge of each other and then get to actually experience an entire rehearsal process and build something with him. It's just been. It's been really, really amazing.

[Interviewer/Host]

What do you remember from that experience?

[Nicholas Christopher]

I remember looking in Aaron's eyes and throwing whatever I could, including shaving cream, at him. And he was just. And he was so game. So I think coming into this process, I really had a. A trust with him of, like, we can go wherever. Or if somebody makes a decision, we'll. We'll just go with it and see what happens. And like I said, every time we get to, like, sit on this bench together, we have. We sit on the same bench in two different scenes, and it's just like, okay, I don't know where this is going, but I'm game, and I know he's game.

[Interviewer/Host]

Our last song we're going to hear is Florence Anatoly singing, you and I. Can you set this up?

[Lea Michele]

Flores and Florence and Anatoly have been, you know, for four years. They have been together in a very sort of loving and safe space. They've fled to London together, and they come back to a chess tournament where they're going to be reunited with Freddie again for the first time, which brings up its own set of, you know, anxiety. And then they are confronted with sort of. They get set up, I guess you could say, in a very negative way. And we sing this of kind song to each other, sort of the first time that we can see a real crack happening between the two of us and in our relationship. And something that felt so pure and safe is now sort of being, you know, attacked and how deeply we are trying to hold on to the love that we have for each other and this connection that we. That we have.

[Interviewer/Host]

Let's hear it.

[Nicholas Christopher]

Yeah, that was pretty good.

[Interviewer/Host]

All right. Look at him stage managing. I love it.

[Narrator/Reader]

This is an all too familiar scene. Life imperceptibly coming between those whose love is as strong as it could or should be. Nothing has altered yet Everything's changed. No one stands still still. I love you completely and hope I always will. Each day we get through means one less mistake left for the making

[Lea Michele]

and

[Narrator/Reader]

there's no return as we slow learn of the chance we're taking. I leave the world to stay just as we are. It's better by far not to be too wise, not too realize. Where there's truth there will be lies. You and I, we've seen it all Been down this road before yet we go unbelieving. You will die We've seen it all chasing our hearts desire Yet I see I still think I'm certain this time it will be more happy indeed.

[Alison Stewart]

That was Nicholas Christopher and Lea Michele performing you and I from the Musical chest live in WNYC's green space as part of our Broadway on the Radio event. We are also joined by actor Aaron Tveit, director Michael Mayer and librettist Danny Strong. You can find a video of the event on WNYC's YouTube page. And if you want to see Lea Michele in Chess, get your tickets quickly. It's been announced that she will be leaving the show on June 21, and she will be replaced by pop star Joanna Jojo levesque starting on June 23rd. If you want to join our next Broadway on the Radio event, tickets are on sale now. We'll be joined by the cast from the critically acclaimed revival of ragtime that's on April 17th. Get your tickets now by going to wnyc.org events. I'm Alison Stewart. Thanks for listening.

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